Nicole Oresme

Nicholas of Oresme ( * before 1330 in Normandy, † July 11, 1382 in Lisieux, France, Nicolas Oresme also, Nicholas Oresme, Nicole Oresme ) was a bishop and one of the most important scientists and philosophers of the 14th century.

Life

1348, he entered as a student of theology at the College of Navarre in Paris, eight years later, he became head ( grand- maitre ) just this college. During this time he came into contact with the royal family - he is even regarded as a tutor to the Dauphin, later King Charles V of France. 1361 he has been archdeacon of Bayeux, 1362 canon at Rouen. In the period 1370-1377 he translated in the order of the king of Aristotle writings from Latin into French. In 1377 he was elected bishop of Lisieux, where he remained until his death.

Scientific work and services

Oresme was with William of Ockham and John Buridan one of the most influential teachers and thinkers of his time. In addition to his duties as a theologian and advisor to the king's house, he found time to take an interest in scientific problems (he was a staunch opponent of astrology ). He was also known as a translator of ancient writings into French and had the ability to convey the science of his time popular.

Oresme is often depicted as a forerunner of modern science; he had discovered the heliocentric system before Copernicus, the case law before Galileo or analytic geometry before Descartes. This view ignores the fact that Oresme is still expected to traditional scholasticism, even if he exerts on some assertions of Aristotle's theory of significant criticism.

Pioneer, he was nevertheless, as his reflections on scientific problems include some new approaches. So he is in contrast to the traditional doctrine that alternative solutions are at least conceivable and discussion. For example, in the Earth's rotation: both the geocentric as the heliocentric hypothesis are equally plausible in scientific discussions since the arguments put forward by Aristotle for the geocentric variant were inconclusive (although represented Nicholas himself not the heliocentric hypothesis).

Also new is the idea of Santa Claus, the motions of the planets were not impressed this in the creation of the world by God, but rather there is a balance of power and resistance. He, however, moves entirely within the traditional notions of " intelligences as movers " and from the fundamental difference between the sublunary and the heavenly world.

Leading the way was his attempt to apply mathematical concepts to scientific phenomena. This is particularly evident in the first use of coordinates when qualitative changes are to be determined numerically. For example, on the question of whether a liter of hot water "warmer " than five liters of lukewarm water. Oresme is both matters than two rectangles with different abscissa ( here: amount of water ) and ordinate (in this case temperature) represents and solves the problem by comparing the surfaces. He is not interested in actual measurements or comparisons, but rather the fundamental solution. It shows quickly that the same reasoning can be applied to questions such as: How does the "movement" a slow but large mass to that of a small, fast ground. This means that on all questions where " intensive" variables iS Aristotle also play a role.

His arguments about economic issues (actually on monetary policy ) have new ways: he insists on the right to mint coins, am not the sovereign, but the population. It therefore goes against the increasing tendency of European rulers to solve their financial problems due to inflation. His influence on the politics of his country his father was unmistakable.

Characteristic of Oresme is his view that natural phenomena natural (and not supernatural ) causes must be returned - a view which clearly expressed in his writings against astrology.

In this sense, Nicholas Oresme is not only a typical representative of the philosophy of the early Renaissance, but also a pioneer among other things, for Cusa, Copernicus, Galileo or Descartes.

Intensive research on the life and work of Oresme operation of Soviet mathematics and science historian Vasily Pavlovich Zubov, the 1958 Tractatus de configurationibus quali tatum et motuum of scholars for the first time transferred among others in the Russian language.